"you have to know what you are looking for to recognize evidence for it when you encounter it."
Exactly so. Or, as I like to put it, the secret of puzzles is that you need to know what kind of picture you're trying to construct in advance. The same epistemic mistake is often made in attempts to reconstruct history as well. The belief that…
"you have to know what you are looking for to recognize evidence for it when you encounter it."
Exactly so. Or, as I like to put it, the secret of puzzles is that you need to know what kind of picture you're trying to construct in advance. The same epistemic mistake is often made in attempts to reconstruct history as well. The belief that "empiricism" is distinct from (and maybe even the opposite of) storytelling is essentially a first order delusion. They spin bad yarns and doggerel while pretending to be Spock, and apply the jigsaws of their minds to force unmatched pieces to fit the ugly, abstract picture they believe will grant them the most power.
Participation in this hubristic delusion -- bad storytellers who pretend to be true detectives -- has led to much mischief disguised as "progress" over the years, but now many people are coming to grips with the fact that the poisoned tree can only yield poisoned fruit.
"you have to know what you are looking for to recognize evidence for it when you encounter it."
Exactly so. Or, as I like to put it, the secret of puzzles is that you need to know what kind of picture you're trying to construct in advance. The same epistemic mistake is often made in attempts to reconstruct history as well. The belief that "empiricism" is distinct from (and maybe even the opposite of) storytelling is essentially a first order delusion. They spin bad yarns and doggerel while pretending to be Spock, and apply the jigsaws of their minds to force unmatched pieces to fit the ugly, abstract picture they believe will grant them the most power.
Participation in this hubristic delusion -- bad storytellers who pretend to be true detectives -- has led to much mischief disguised as "progress" over the years, but now many people are coming to grips with the fact that the poisoned tree can only yield poisoned fruit.